Feedback Please - PDQ 34 or 41

Post here if you want to discuss a topic specific to the MV/32, MV/34, and MV/41.
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Tomash
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Feedback Please - PDQ 34 or 41

Post by Tomash »

We are in the process of pursuing the purchase of a Catamaran for our retirement; and are looking for an exceptional powercat to suit our needs.

Our needs are for a full time live aboard cruising Cat (is a 34 to small for a couple), good safety (how is the 34 in rough seas or is she just a fair weather coastal cruiser), long range capabilities (what is your range at 8 to 10 knots - both the 34 and 41 appear to have small tanks), comfort (how comfortable is limited dinette living, are heads, galley and living areas suitbale for extended living), quality (is fit and finish of acceptable standards), retention of initial investment = quality (does PDQ keep it's value when it is time to sell) and dealer support (have you had any unresolved issues or concerns).

Our cruising grounds will be PNW, Alaska, Panama Canal, ICW, Great Loop, Caribbeann & Bahamas; with plans to ship to Europe to cruise the canal and lock systems from Scandinavia, England, then North to South through Europe to the Med.

Being new to PDQ products it would be appreciated if 34 owners could respond to our questions and to advise if they are pleased with their choice and what alternative makes and sizes did you explore prior to going to a PDQ, why a PDQ and how happy are you?

Feedback from potential 41' owners would also be appreciatted (we have been told it will be a minimum of 26 to 30 months to receive a 41 if you have not already placed your order!).

It would also be excellent to have feedback from 34 owners who are planning to move up to a 41.....

thank you

Craig and Jan Tomash
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
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New PDQ

Post by Barefeet4409 »

Hi. My wife and I have a PDQ44 Antares. I can tell you that the fit and finish are wonderful. The interior cherry is warm and well joined - and after two years we have had no delamination or deterioration of any kind. People still ooh and ahh when they come aboard. It feels like home to us and we are a bit happy every time we step aboard. After two years of owning her we are about to live aboard full time (starting in September). We have no worries that we will be comfortable - and we are planning a lot of open water passages too.

It is a sailboat, of course, so our comments may not be applicable but I assume the quality of construction would be equivalent - and the intelligence behind the design ought to be similar. I have no idea what sort of distance you could go on your tanks - nor has anyone spent time aboard a power 41 to really know how the layout works for live-aboard, but I can't imagine PDQ would do a bad job with it. I personally like the sail layout of the 44 more than any of their competitors. Perhaps you could go aboard a 44 and see what you think of the fit and finish?

As for resale - there are NO Antares 44's on the market. So I think that people are relatively happy with what they have .... !!

Chris
Tomash
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Choosing a New PDQ

Post by Tomash »

Thanks for the input on your PDQ; by reading as many of the old forum's as I can it seams there PDQ34 owners have identified a couple of concerns which may improve on the PDQ34 design:

1. Spray Rails are reported as ineffective
2. Rub Rails are insufficient in size and design

Any other items which owners would like to see incorporated into the new 41 or on a 34?

I am still interested in hearing from those 34 owners who are moving up to a 41.....

thanks

Craig
Craig Tomash
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Post by duetto »

hi craig,

we bought our 2003 last year. it was lightly used. we've travelled from fl to ct and back and are now in the bahamas. we've lived on the boat since oct 5, except for 1 month at xmas.

we cruise primarily in icw and fl. for diane & i it is a great boat for a couple. i consider it the perfect icw boat, a perfect, fl boat, a perfect bahamas boat.we crossed the gulfstream in a nw wind which setup 5+' short chop. boat was fine. can't say more about bad offshore.

on another note, construction and fit are very good.

it's a good boat that i have confidence in.

john
john & diane cummings
duetto mv34 #23
Tomash
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Post by Tomash »

John:

Thanks for you input.... we are definitely looking at both the 34 & 41; but obviously like the price of the 34.

We are meeting with PDQ on Friday at a Floating Boat Show in Victoria... the boat we will be seeing is also a 34 with 75hp engines.

Glad to hear that you like living aboard the 34..... are you planning long term liveaboard and cruising.....

Craig
Craig Tomash
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Post by duetto »

hi craig,

we plan to do roundtrip between connecticut /florida/bahamas for the foreseeable future...so long as we're able. we live aboard approx 8 months and then summer in connecticut.

also, forgot to address 2 issues that you brought up: 1) spray rails. i've seen that mentioned here before. we just don't see a problem until chop gets into 2-3 foot range. at that point, we get more "spray" from blowback from waves getting atomized under bridge deck. 2) rub rails. they are my best friend when docking where there are pilings. just put them against the piling and use as a pivot. can't imagine having them be much bigger. if issue is height then that's valid, but lower would mess up clean lines of boat. aah comprimises.

if you're talking to rob poiror, give him our regards.
john & diane cummings
duetto mv34 #23
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FeedBack Please

Post by Leadfree »

Hi there. I agree with all that has been written so far. This is our second PDQ and we have had our MV for 4 years, living on it half that time. We too cruise from Michigan to the ICW and FL and Bahamas as far as the Jumentos. We find it very comfortable to live on for 6-9 months at a time and having 2 friends or family aboard at a time works nicely. Everyone seems to have someplace they can go on the boat.
There are boats in Washington and I understand one went to Belize.
Sharon of Lead Free Too
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Post by Rejoice »

Greetings from inland. Annie and I bought our 34 (MV/34-51) in 2004 and brought her home through the Great Lakes and Western Rivers (see Passagemaker Magazine, October 2005 issue for an article on the trip). We faced seas constantly in the 8-10 feet area crossing Lake Erie. The boat handled them fine once we learned to roll over them rather than try to push through. Our PDQ manual says the boat is rated for Force 8 winds (39 to 46 mph, I think) and seas to 12 feet.

As far as livability we have only made a couple of trips since we are still working, but Annie says she won't cruise on anything else.

We are very glad we got the Yanmar 100s. They allow us to cruise at about 16 knots all day long, in flat water. Got 2.78 miles per gallan on our last run of about 500 miles on the Cumberland River (downstream and back). Annie wont let me run at 8-10 knots, so I don't know what mileage you might achieve.

A final word on PDQ--they and the two dealers we worked with (Rhumb Line and Trawlers Mid-West) went out of their ways to take care of us, both before we bought the boat and afterwords. We've had very few problems, but when we had one, they came through.

Haven't seen the 41 so cannot comment on it other than that the drawings look good.

Hope this helps and good luck.
Anne & Dave Mensel
Rejoice
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Post by Milky Way »

Dear Craig, Marilyn and I have had Milky Way MV34/78 exactly one year. We have made some minor alterations, we like the layout very much. We lounge on our reapolstered and raised by 4 inches lower helm seat as well as our L shaped settee. You can also do the same in the main salon area, as I modified the existing table to one that folds to half the width to facilitate easy movement. The 41 does not feature this layout as there is no L shaped settee. I really enjoy the flybridge. This boat handles extremely well in rough water. I guess if climbing into bed is an issue with the 34, then the 41 is your answer. In all fairness, I have only seen bits and peaces in the flesh and we may see it on the floor end of August and change our mind. Armin Quickert MV34/78.
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Feedback Please - PDQ 34 or 41

Post by Sno' Dog »

Craig and Jan,

Unfortunately, there's probably no simple answer to your question. I suspect you'll be able to do everything you want in either boat.

The 41 will, no doubt, provide an extra measure of comfort - but at a price. Beside the initial investment, you'll be paying more for fuel and dockage. (My guess is, resale value will be excellent with either boat).

To me, it's a bit like choosing between a Toyota and a Lexus for your next long trip - they'll both get you there. But, is the extra comfort of the Lexus worth the extra money? Only you can decide.

Personally, if I could afford it, I'd go with the 41. On the other hand, we continue to be delighed with our "little" 34. She seems plenty big for the two of us, and quite adequate for two additional guests on occasion. So far, we've found plenty of storage space (there are still empty lockers aboard!) and we love the easy handling and economical performance.
(Incidentally, if you haven't checked the Sno' Dog Log website lately, you'll find lots of info there, including our latest performance numbers). Here's a direct link: http://www.snodoglog.com/Performance.html

We did get some pretty large seas (6-8') off the coast of Maine and the boat handled just fine. There is a lot of motion up on the fly bridge, but you can always come down for a gentler ride (as my wife usually does). I'm sure the extra weight of the 41 will give it a somewhat better ride in rough conditions.

As for range, it looks as though the tankage of the 34 will prove quite adequate because of its extreme economy. My guess is that the 41 will end up using about twice as much fuel, so its range will probably be only slightly greater with those big 360 gallon tanks.

We're certainly keeping our eye on the 41, and we may well end up a proud owner one of these days. But for the present, we love our little 34!

Henry Clews
aboard Sno' Dog in Newington, NH
Sno' Dog Log http://www.snodoglog.com/ now ad-free!
Last edited by Sno' Dog on Tue Dec 15, 2009 12:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Milky Way
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Sno' Dog Performance figures.

Post by Milky Way »

Hi, I agree with your comments 41 vs 34. I do believe that your partner might experience more of a challenge docking ,as jumping off the side deck would be dangerous because of the higher freeboard on the 41. Regarding your performance figures, take a look at my comments on the subject of Distance per Tank on the MV34. I do believe that you have the same engine and transmission, but PDQ changed the props from 17 by 16 to 17by 15. Top speed is about the same at 3500 rpm, but the economical sweet spot is at 2600 to 2650 rpm with a speed between 15 and 17 mph ( not knots). this is considerable lower rpm and hence a quieter running of the engines. Also props can have pitch variations affecting performance and comfort. My trim tabs as set, result in planing at a lower speed ,and because the rear of the bridge deck is a bit higher out of the water the pounding is reduced when crossing on coming waves at cruising speed. What do tou think? We enjoyed meeting all of you in Kingston On and it sure sounds that you had a great trip. Armin Quickert MV34/78.
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Post by Sno' Dog »

Hello Armin,

Yes, I remember meeting you in Kingston in May. Sorry we didn't get to talk longer - I remember thinking, here's a man who knows a thing or two about the PDQ!

As for the difficulty of "jumping off the side deck", I really don't see much of a problem. One of the better features of our boat - and I assume this will apply as well to the 41 - is the set of steps running down the transoms. On Sno' Dog we've been able to get both my wife's parents (in their late 70's) and my mother (age 87) on and off without problem. There's almost always a step that lines up with the dock height.

On the performance issue, I appreciate the info. Perhaps you meant to post this on the currently-runing PCW topic: Sno' Dog Performance? http://lists.samurai.com/pipermail/powe ... 01352.html

Henry
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